1053. Blasphemy

Blasphemy is the first book in which Wyman Ford, appears. Wyman Ford is the main character in Douglas Preston's Blasphemy and Impact. He's a Private Investigator, an ex-CIA Agent, a monk, and many other things. He's not really a Jack-of-all-trades, like the guy in Human Target or some other such heroes. He's, however, a man who tries to get the job done.

In this first real job for Wyman, we see him utilizing some of his knowledge of the Navajo language, which is really difficult to learn, getting on the rez (reservation) out in Arizona as a liaison with the tribe on the big project on their land. The US Government built a Giant Super-Collider near Red Mesa to explore the mysteries of the Big Bang. After all, we don't want the Europeans with their Large Hadron Collider to beat us. Wyman, knows one of the scientists at the project, apart from knowing a bit of the Navajo culture so he's embedded to find out why the project has fallen behind. Money has been spent, but there have been no results.

Meanwhile, the Navajo tribal council is having second thoughts. The lobbyists that were hired to represent their interests are trying to manipulate them AND public opinion. Additionally, a local preacher connects with a well known Evangelical Pastor who is aghast at the $40 Billion cost of the Super-Collider (called by the scientists "Isabella"). Wyman's history with a scientist on the project is that of a long ago love affair, when they were both young and in college. Her name is Kate Mercer. All these threads come into contact together with an immense discovery when the collider is first powered to 100%.

What is the discovery the scientists make and it's implications to theoretical physics? Does this discovery have theological implications? Can Wyman bring the truth out into the world or should he hide the truth from the President and his science adviser who recruited him for this mission? Why are the scientists hiding the truth? Why was a man killed to hide the truth?

This is a book worth staying-up all night for. It is the second Douglas Preston book that I have read, but is probably  the first Wyman Ford adventure. It is not as fantastical (in some sense) than "Impact" which I reviewed earlier in this blog -- since I read that one first! But I do think it stands very well on its own. It is an excellent book, because it shows the limits of this particular character in the face of an impossible situation. He's faced with something he knows to NOT be true, yet at the same time, he can not convince others of this fact. His faith is not the faith of others; OR, put another way -- Kate's faith is so strong that he can not change her mind without different evidence otherwise.

All in all, a highly satisfying book and highly recommended! 4 stars out of 5!

1048. Impact

Recently, I have had a run of good luck with the books I have been reading, as they have provided ample entertainment, and made for an exciting read. This includes this fantastic little gem of a book that I saw at the bookstore and I had to pick-up. It is called, Impact by Douglas Preston and it is a most unusual thriller.

Before, I get into the meat of this review, I am reminded that I had never read a book by Douglas Preston before this one, but he has been an author that I have kept my eye on in the past few years. For one reason or another, his titles have attracted me, but I had not had occasion to pick one up. I had previously purchased "Blasphemy", but I had not read it. Suffice it to say, I intend to change that oversight.

The other thing that I find interesting is the plot of this book. Without of course, giving away too many details, the book opens as your standard scientific-mystery-whodunit-cum-thriller. Recently (and this encompasses the past couple of years), I have been reading about the death of the Science Fiction Genre as a Literary Genre and how the amount of written material being produced in it, is nowhere near what we used to see during the Golden Age or even the Silver Age (anything after the 1960s into the 1980s) or even beyond.  Plus the written material has no coherence to it, and is all over the map, as in, there is no particular style that dominates science fiction as a Genre. This then, could be the reason why a lot of writers don't want to be categorized as Science Fiction writers anymore, even though they constantly delve into that Genre, and yet, their books are found on the more acceptable, mainstream, fiction sales, aisles. The supposition then is, that Douglas Preston here, has written a masterful Science Fiction novel, but one that will not be categorized as such in any bookstore or library, and similarly will never win any major Literary Science Fiction awards like the Nebula or Hugo. On the other hand, the author is able to sell his very masterful cautionary tale to a much wider audience. Is that an acceptable trade-off?  You be the judge.

The plot of this novel is simple enough: Something has impacted the Earth, hitting off the coast of Maine. In addition, one of the scientists from the Mars Mapping Mission at the California Institute of Technology has been found dead because of what he knows. Meanwhile, another scientist, has picked-up the mantle of the dead scientist and continued his research. Something is going on, on Mars. Is the Earth impact and the events on Mars related? This world spanning adventure, which is very well plotted, and paced, with good characters, will keep your interest through-out, and will leave you breathless in many places. It was hard to put down for very long and it was definitely one of those books that I finished in less than 3 days. If it wasn't for other obligations, I would have read it in one sitting.

Yes, some of the side characters are kind of sketchy, and some of the details are still left hanging out there, but in a book such as this, the main plot, and the people you really care about, who are at the center of things, are well conceived, and isn't that all you can ever expect from a well plotted book?

So, I highly recommend this book, and I give it a well earned 5 stars out of 5. A most enjoyable first read for me from Mr. Douglas Preston.